Star Trek: Every Version Of The Enterprise Explained

The USS Enterprise is the Federation’s flagship, but each version of Star Trek‘s signature spacecraft requires a bit of explanation. Home to some of the most exciting adventures in the Star Trek franchise’s illustrious history, the Enterprise is also one of the most recognizable ships in science fiction history, even though it has gone through a lot of changes since its debut in Star Trek: The Original Series. Generally maintaining its signature saucer and nacelles look, the specifications of each version of the Enterprise have seen it grow and change with each major refit — still, it’s always been the Federation’s flagship no matter what era it flew in.

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The Enterprise first appeared in Star Trek: The Original Series but was already a veteran of the Federation fleet by the time Captain Kirk and his crew went on their first five-year mission. The history of Starfleet is inextricably tied to the Enterprise, and each show makes it clear that she’s the top of the line. Going as far back as the events of Star Trek: Enterprise, the titular vessel was the first to attempt deep space exploration during the course of the prequel series, but small clues alluded to the fact that an Enterprise was always a part of space travel, long before Captain Archer first donned his uniform.

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Pre-Federation Enterprises (Star Trek: Enterprise)

Excluding the real-life space shuttle launched by NASA in 1977, the oldest known example of a space-faring ship to bear the Enterprise name was briefly hinted at during Star Trek: Enterprise. Seen in Star Trek: Enterprise season 2, episode 24, “First Flight,” a painting of the USS Enterprise XCV 330 revealed it to be a probe-like vessel with a long tube body that was surrounded by massive orbiting rings. Far from the most powerful Starfleet ship, the XCV 330’s design was primitive even by Enterprise-era standards, and little has been revealed in canon about the specification or history of the vessel.

Launched in the year 2150, the Enterprise NX-01 was captained by Jonathan Archer until the year 2161 and was the setting for the series Star Trek: Enterprise. The hull of the NX-01 consisted of a massive saucer section that tapered off into two nacelles that were in line with the saucer and gave the ship a sleeker profile compared to later incarnations of the Enterprise. Helping Captain Archer make crucial first contacts during his tenure, the NX-01 was the top of the line for its era and was the first Earth starship capable of reaching warp five, which came in handy during the formation of the United Federation of Planets.

USS Enterprise NCC-1701 (Star Trek: The Original Series – Star Trek III: The Search For Spock)

After the formation of the United Federation of Planets, the Enterprise NX-01 was scuttled because it was woefully behind the times compared to the superior technology of the Vulcans. As such, the Enterprise name sat dormant until the creation of the Constitution class of starship where the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 was launched in 2245. First captained by Robert April and then Christopher Pike, the true glory years of the NCC-1701 came under the command of Captain James T. Kirk during the events of Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Animated Series. Kirk’s two five-year missions between 2265 and 2280 are the stuff of legend.

Much larger than its predecessor, the NX-01, the Enterprise NCC-1701 also sported a massive saucer section and nacelles but featured a secondary hull that sat below the saucer for a less aerodynamic design. Various refits throughout its lifetime updated the look of the ship, and by the events of the first Star Trek movie, the Enterprise had an updated interior. After Kirk, two other men captained the Enterprise 1701: Spock and the brief tenure of Willard Decker. However, the eventual self-destruction of the vessel, enacted by Kirk in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, was a fitting end to her 40 years of service.

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USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home – Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

Following the total destruction of the Enterprise NCC-1701 in Star Trek: The Search for Spock, Kirk was “demoted” back to captaincy and given an entirely new USS Enterprise in the form of the commissioned NCC-1701-A in 2286. Identical in look and technical specifications to its predecessor, the NCC-1701-A was nevertheless beset with technical problems, as seen during the events of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Kirk was the only person to captain the vessel in its seven-year service period, and with Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country serving as the Star Trek: The Original Series finale, it only made sense for the ship to be decommissioned then.

USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B (Star Trek: Generations)

The NCC-1701 and 1701-A were the top of the line during their tenures, but the emergence of the Excelsior class of starship in Star Trek: The Search for Spock showed that the Constitution class had become a Starfleet dinosaur. In Star Trek: Generations, the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B was launched under the new Excelsior class and captained by John Harriman in 2293. The ship’s saucer section was flattened along with the removal of the neck between the two hulls for a streamlined look. Most of the history of the NCC-1701-B was captured in non-canon stories, but her impressive 36-year service period almost surpassed that of the original NCC-1701 in length.

USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

Despite only appearing in Star Trek: The Next Generation, season 3, episode 15, “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” the NCC-1701-C is nevertheless one of the most important incarnations of the ship. Tied into Tasha Yar’s alternate reality timeline, the NCC-1701-C was destroyed in 2344 while defending the Klingon outpost Narendra III during an attack from the Romulans. It was an Ambassador class ship that replaced the streamlined look of the NCC-1701-B with a longer neck, and the NCC-1701-C featured a tubular secondary hull that was reminiscent of its predecessors. While little is known about the ship, its service was integral in the Federation forging an alliance with the Klingons.

USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

The Enterprise grew in scale with each subsequent redesign, and the USS Enterprise 1701-D joined Starfleet as the largest vessel to ever sport the name, dwarfing the familiar and classic NCC-1701 model. The first of the line among Starfleet’s many ships, as part of the impressive Galaxy class, the Enterprise-D was the setting for the events of Star Trek: The Next Generation and was commissioned in 2363. Captained only by Jean Luc Picard during its eight years in deep space, the enhanced technology of the Enterprise-D allowed her to be a TNG character all her own, and her impressive firepower made her a true force in the galaxy.

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Equipped with a removable saucer section, the oval design of said saucer was in stark contrast to the circular design of previous ships, and the secondary hull dropped the tubular structure in favor of a flattened and wide look. She was eventually destroyed during the events of Star Trek: Generations and yet her sub-decade tenure was packed with more important events than many of the previous Enterprises combined. After decades of playing a lesser role in the Star Trek universe following Captain Kirk’s departure, the tenure of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the NCC-1701-D helped firmly reestablish the Enterprise as the true flagship of Starfleet.

Though previous starship classes lasted for generations, the upgrades of the post-TNG era saw a new class every few years. To replace the Enterprise-D following Star Trek: Generations, the Sovereign class Enterprise NCC-1701-E was commissioned under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in 2372. Sent back in time to defeat the Borg during the events of Star Trek: First Contact, the Enterprise-E minimized the lower hull and brought the nacelles in line with the saucer for a narrow body that matched the warlike tone of post-TNG Star Trek. The fate of the Enterprise-E hasn’t been revealed yet, but her contributions to the Dominion War were well-noted in non-canon media.

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